A sharp split defined trading on the Nigerian Exchange on Wednesday, July 1, 2026: the NGX ASI rose 0.88% to 1,842.88 points, yet market breadth stayed firmly negative at 18 gainers against 31 losers, with 3 unchanged. At the top of the leaderboard, Austin Laz & Company surged 10.0% to NGN 3.30 and Guinea Insurance climbed 9.9% to NGN 1.00, masking a session that was weaker under the surface than the headline index suggested.
Key figures
- NGX ASI: +0.88% at 1,842.88
- Austin Laz & Company: +10.0% at NGN 3.30
- Guinea Insurance: +9.9% at NGN 1.00
- Market breadth: 18 gainers / 31 losers / 3 unchanged
- Aradel Holdings: -10.0% at NGN 1,275.8
Market context: headline strength, weak internals
For anyone tracking NGX today, the index gain only tells part of the story. The July 1 session delivered a positive close for the benchmark even as decliners outnumbered advancers by 13 stocks, a sign that buying was concentrated rather than broad-based. That divergence showed up clearly in the loser board, where heavyweight and actively traded names such as Dangote Cement fell , dropped , and Sterling Bank lost . Turnover patterns reinforced that selective tone. Based on exchange data, the most active counters by traded value were Zenith Bank at , Aradel Holdings at , Sterling Bank at , Dangote Cement at , and GTCO at . In other words, a large share of market liquidity flowed into names that actually closed lower, which makes the rise in the benchmark look less convincing from a breadth perspective. The macro backdrop also mattered. , with the naira strengthening on the day, while Brent crude fell and was down . For Nigeria, that combination is important: softer oil prices can weigh on export revenue expectations and fiscal sentiment, even if a slightly firmer naira offers some relief for import-dependent businesses. That is why any serious has to connect local equity moves to oil and FX, not just read the index in isolation.